As an economist you will develop the skills to understand how consumers and firms interact and behave, how government policy affects the economy and how financial systems operate.

By providing an in-depth analysis of firms’ decision making in a variety of settings, economics can help business managers make better pricing, production and investment decisions. This course allows you to develop a thorough understanding of modern economics and its applications to current policy issues.

About the course

A key feature of this degree is that it enables you to choose a highly specialised mix of options concentrating on areas that appeal to your interests and career aspirations.

In the first two years you will develop a thorough understanding of the latest developments in economic analysis and policy application. Your personal skills will be developed through a range of modules building your ability to present, analyse data and work in groups. Modern economics relies heavily on model-building and statistical skills, and these skills form a core part of the course in the second year. A range of options are available in each year including the opportunity to study a modern language.

It is in the final year that students enjoy the maximum choice and flexibility. The final year consists of modules in advanced macroeconomics, microeconomics and applied econometrics. Alongside these, you choose options from within general areas of study such as international economics, money and finance, business and industrial economics and a wide range of specialised areas of applied economics such as the economics of developing countries and environmental economics. In addition, you can choose to develop further the modelling and statistical skills introduced in the second year.

Optional Year on Professional placement or Studying Abroad

You can choose to extend your degree to a four year degree to include a year on professional placement, a year studying abroad, or six months of each.

A salaried Professional Placement helps you test drive a career and stand out to employers. Our dedicated Placements Office work with over 400 leading employers of all sizes around the world to help you secure a placement. Typically around 1/3rd of placement students are offered a job by their placement employer.

Studying Abroad at one of our partner universities around the world also boosts your employability and helps you develop intercultural skills highly prized by employers.

Satisfactory completion of either of these options results in either a Diploma in International Studies (DIntS) or a Diploma in Professional Studies (DPS) in addition to your degree.

The core subjects and options may vary from year to year. For the latest information please email us.

Year 1

Compulsory modules

Principles of Macroeconomics

Principles of Microeconomics

Data Analysis I & II

Quantitative Economics

Skills for Study and Employment

Plus a number modules from a list of options including: Organisational Behaviour, Introduction to Accounting, Introduction to Democratic Government, Introduction to Sociology, Geographies of Global Economic Change, Principles of Law, Management of Human Resources, Geographies of Identity, Introduction to Criminology and Social Policy, Political Ideologies, Applied Languages.

Year 2

Compulsory modules

Intermediate Macroeconomics

Intermediate Microeconomics

Introduction to Econometrics

Plus a number modules from a list of options including: Economics of the Financial System, The Economics of Social Issues, Introduction to Financial Economics, International Economic Relations, Transport Economics, History of Economic Thought, Energy and the Environment, Principles of Marketing, The Marketing Mix, Operations Management, Accounting for Managers, Applied Languages.

The core subjects and options may vary from year to year. The latest information can be obtained via our website, or by emailing us.

Teaching and learning

Our extensive and regular interaction with major companies around the world ensures all our teaching is commercially relevant. Many of our teaching staff are invited by governments, the media and companies around the world to advise on issues of policy and practice. Their insights keep our courses up to date with the latest thinking and best practice.

In the first year, students can expect class contact time comprised of lectures, tutorials, computer workshops or clinics. There are also weekly Maths tutorials available for those students who do not have A-level Maths. Assessment is by a mix of coursework and examinations at the end of each semester. Coursework typically accounts for between one-fifth and one-third of the available marks for a module, although a few modules are assessed totally by coursework. Coursework assessment is based on individual essays, projects, multiple choice tests, computer-based exercises, class tests and group work.